A gang of four thieves in the Chola country, boarding for the time at an old woman's house. One day, entrusted her with the safe custody of a sealed brass pot containing their plunder, with strict injunctions that it was only to be returned on the joint demand of all four of them.
One morning, as the thieves were seated on the pial in front of the house, a butter-milk seller passed along the street and, wishing to have a drink, they sent the youngest of them to fetch a vessel from the boarding-house woman.
The young thief saw his opportunity in this and, entering the house, informed the old lady they his companions had seen him to fetch the brass pot left with her.
She, however, demurred to this and referred to the original understanding, upon which the arch rogue referred her to his friends seated outside.
She shouted out to them asking if she might deliver the pot to their messenger and they, thinking only of a pot they wanted for buying butter-milk, shouted back a reply in the affirmative.
The safe deposit was accordingly returned, and the messenger disappeared with it through the back door of the house.
The remaining three, after waiting in vain for the return of their companion with the required vessel, entered the house and were thunderstruck on learning what had actually happened.
Resolved, however, to make the old lady pay for their own folly, they dragged her before the City Judge.
The latter, after due enquiry, pronounced judgement in favour of the thieves.
As the unfortunate woman was returning home, loudly bewailing her misfortune and the injustice of the Judge's verdict, a bright and precociously wise-looking youth, named Raman, who was engaged in a game of marbles with his playmates, questioned the woman and learnt the cause of her grief.
He, too, appeared moved by the woman's tale of injustice, and cried out, as his marble dropped into its appropriate hole, "May Heaven's thunderbolt same the unjust Judge who decided against the widow, as certainly as my marble has found its goal." The Royal Harkaras, who happened to hear this as they passed by, took the youngster up to the king and reported his words. The king was amused, and thus addressed Raman: "Well, Young Sir! consider yourself the Judge in this case, and deal even-handed justice, if you can do it better.
" Raman, nothing daunted by the royal mandate, cheerfully took a seat then and there, summoned the parties and recorded their statements, and his judgment, delivered without a moment's doubt or hesitation, was that inasmuch as the original compact was that the safe-deposit was not to be returned unless and until the whole quartette of thieves jointly demanded it, the present Plaintiffs should be non-suited.
The King was so charmed at this remarkable display of wisdom and shrewdness on the part of Raman, that he literally loaded him honors and presents, in consequence of which he was ever after known as Mariada Ramanna or the Honored Raman, and he also conferred on him the office of a judge in his realm. Many were the difficult cases of hard swearing in which Mariada Ramanna proved, by his shrewdness, his peculiar fitness for the discovery of truth and for dealing even-handed justice.
